STOCKHOLM, April 25 (Reuters) - Auto safety gear maker Autoliv posted a bigger-than-expected rise in first-quarter earnings on Friday and stood by its forecast for slightly lower sales growth and a flat operating margin this year.
Autoliv, the world's biggest maker of safety gear such as seat belts and airbags, said quarterly operating earnings rose to $192 million. The mean forecast in a Reuters poll of analysts was for flat year-on-year earnings of $182 million. (Reporting by Niklas Pollard and Helena Soderpalm; Editing by Alistair Scrutton)